Listed below are the categories in Google data that you can use to detect visitor’s traffic on your site. When you log into Google Analytics, you will see these exact words in the right column with the ability to click on them to obtain your reports.

Acquisition: refers to how you obtained your website traffic. In the simplest terms, you can use the acquisition reports to see how people arrive to your site. Acquisition reports are an excellent way to see which vehicles are best for bringing traffic to your site. You can drill down many layers on these reports. If you buy advertising on Google, the acquisition reports will reveal which keywords produce the best response.

Behavior: reports tell you what people are actually doing on your website. Using behavior reports, you can see if visitors are actually taking the actions you want them to take. It measures the effectiveness of your website. If you find people not following your intended path (you can see where they get stuck), you can get your webmaster to make structural changes. One of the more interesting reports under the behavior tab and the overview tab below it, is the behavior flow view where you can see every step of every visitor from entry to exit. There are many other behavior reports available which you should study once you are up and running and comfortable with all the new information you will be getting.

Conversion: reports literally slice and dice every movement a visitor takes on your site, including how much time he or she takes at each step. Using this data, you can make detailed adjustments to your site to maximize the process it takes to get the customer to get to your “Goal” (call for an appointment or ask for a price, make an online purchase, request more information).

When it is all said and done, Google Analytics does not give you answers, it locates problems and guides you in solving them. Examples of issues that might be cause for concern might include: how long it takes for a page to load; a significant number of visitors dropping out at a certain point; identifying certain keywords that are more successful than others in achieving the goal, etc.